Hundreds of young men and women who migrated from the northern region to Ghana’s capital-Accra have started arriving in Tamale. The evicted dwellers arrived in Tamale with a few of their belongings in Tamale from Accra after their structures in which they reside have been demolished by Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA).
Over thirty of them arrived in Lamashegu, a suburb of Tamale Wednesday for onward departure to their various districts.
The head potters popularly called Kayaye and young men who deal in scraps arrived in Tamale from their base in Old Fadama popularly referred to as Sodom and Gomorrah, a suburb in Accra.
They include young men and women who migrated from Northern region to engage in all manner of jobs and trade.
The Accra mayor, Alfred Okoe Vanderpuije took the slum dwellers by surprise last Saturday morning when he led heavily armed military and police to the place forcing the dwellers to flee.
The decision, Vanderpuije described as a major step towards saving lives and property. Speaking to Zaa News in Tamale shortly after their arrival, the evictees accused government of not respecting their fundamental human rights enshrined in Ghana’s constitutions and UN conventions on slum dwellers.
According to them, the claim by the Accra mayor that they were given enough notice to vacate the place was not true.
They also disputed claims that there was an arrangement to transport them back to their homes and urged those commenting on the matter especially politicians to stop playing into their sensitivity. ’some of us were not able to pick our monies and we had to borrow transport fares from friends back home’, a victim told Zaa News.
The National Secretary of slum dwellers in Ghana, Alhassan Abdallah has refuted claims AMA that Old Fadama was the cause of June 3 Accra disaster is not ture.
According to him, Sodom and Gomorrah was the cause of the Accra flood, all people living there would have perished, but not even one of them fell as a victim. Meanwhile, Zaa News gathered that hundreds of Kayayes are on their way to the northern region.
Demolition and politics
When the demolishing became the national issue, all political parties kept mute waiting to hear how government will responds to the plight of the displaced thousands of people mainly from the northern region.
Their quietness was strategic because the dwellers vote and the constituency where they reside the Odododiodoo constituency was one term deciding factor in Ghana’s election history and so they were treading with the issue cautiously in order not lose votes come 2016.
However, the incumbent NDC Member of Parliament for the area and the Deputy Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, Nii Lantey Vandepuy realizing Accra mayor action repercussions on his election fortunes monitored the events closely to ensure that his seat is save.
He is making progress to protect his seat and perhaps the wellbeing of our brothers and sister and their children. That is an indigene of Accra showing concern about the poor and young energetic men and women. Come to thing of Northern Caucus in Ghana’s parliament, zero. Not even a visit to the Tamale lorry station to console their own.
journalists in the Northern region
When I posted my opinion on our platform on the arrival of our brothers and sisters colleagues were upset at the manner in which they were treated. A colleague posted;’’ If SADA was managing well as planned, SADA alone could have engaged a bunch of them’’.
Another colleague asked, ’I ask myself, which person in his right mind would leave your own home for another if the what you are pursuing in such a place can be gotten in your own land’?
He continue, we all advocate the need for northerners to stay in the north to help develop it but the ruling must take the rule seriously and invest into the north to prevent the exodus of the youth make natives stay here (north).
Sometimes I wonder why leaders from the Volta and Ashanti Religious respectively can speak with one voice to push for the interest of their people in any government and our very own leaders here can’t do same’ another one asked. We are only good to do the pushing only when it is time for elections. I don’t see this tag of us classified as second citizen’s ending anytime soon.
Nanton legislature
After monitoring comments emanating from the social media, the Member of Parliament for Nanton constituency and the Deputy Trade and Industry Minister, Hon. Ibrahim Mohammed Mutala and very proud northerner joined the fray far away Ghana.
‘’Am monitoring the events far away from Ghana with pain. I have since paid for some buses to convey my constituent’s home. As I write this, two of the buses are on their way home. For me is a reminder of challenges confronting us as a people and the need for us to change the way we do things if at all we are sincere in solving the problems. I remember when I made a statement on the floor of parliament the need for us to channel the huge sums of money provided Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty program ( LEAP) into providing the needed growth poles that can address the century old problems of exodus of our able youth to the southern part of the country in search of unavailable jobs I was not only insulted but was virtually verbally lynched. Show me one country where poverty was reduced just merely given out money to people. In any case how much do they give to the aged and whether sincerely that can help them at all. Remember the so-called aged may have about 6 young people who have no jobs to take care of.
To the Nanton MP, providing job opportunities for the young people will earn them a decent salary to be able to take care of their grandfathers and other siblings. He described LEAP as one of the most unexamined intervention by any country. We condemn this in opposition and unfortunately continuing it. Is sad he said.
The thirty one MPs that constitute the northern Caucus, only one is making effort to support his constituent.
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